Childcare Search for a Mentor

Background:

Alice and Peter have two teenage children. Peter is a lawyer working for a city law firm and Alice runs her own consultancy business. In July 2012, they asked Parental Choice to search for a mentor on the basis of the following criteria:

They have a daughter who suffers from ADD and dyslexia and needs a mentor to help organise her; learn good study skills and exam technique and draw up and implement a revision timetable;

They require a mentor for her to be available ideally during the summer holidays from August 2012 and then during term time from September 2012 onwards;

The mentor must have her own car and be available to pick the daughter up from school at 4.10pm during the week and bring her home; and

The mentor must be available to help after school at least 3 times a week for 2 hours and initially every day for the first two weeks of school. Thereafter the hours are flexible depending on the daughter and the mentor’s judgement.

Conclusion:

Parental Choice identified 3 suitable mentors who were available. We submitted our report to them on 1 August 2012 with full details on each available mentor as set out below with each of their CVs attached as schedules and references available upon request. Parental Choice also organised for each of the mentors to be available for telephone interviews after 7pm during the following week. Their chosen mentor started on 3 September. Alice has now recommended Parental Choice to her friends and family.

“From the moment I picked up the phone and spoke to Sarah-Jane at Parental Choice I knew we were in safe hands. Sarah-Jane really took the time to understand exactly what we were looking for. We needed a mentor, not a tutor, and I wasn’t sure how to go about finding such a thing or even if it existed.

A couple of weeks after our initial conversation, Parental Choice sent me a pack of three excellent candidates one of whom, Annabel, was perfect. Two weeks into term and the arrangement has worked out better than I’d dared to hope. Annabel has quickly built a rapport with our daughter and together they have established a system and routine for organising her work and belongings that is already producing results. My daughter is noticeably happier and more confident and now has the support and framework that will allow her to succeed despite her learning difficulties.

I have no hesitation in recommending Sarah-Jane and Parental Choice- the childcare search service was professional, efficient and excellent value for money.” Alice